Six Degrees of Grant County

A genealogy blog by Mary Dutcher Knapp. I write primarily about my ancestors in southwest/central Wisconsin. I am very sarcastic, so please take everything I say with a grain of salt. Part of the Fakie Spaceman family. E-mail me at mary.c.dutcher@gmail.com.

Wisconsin burials are being threatened by the proposed Bill LRB-2890/2015 Assembly Bill 620, an “amendment” to the current Burial Sites Act that turns the original intent of the act on its head. There is still time to make a difference, if readers like YOU contact your elected officials and the bill’s sponsors. Wisconsin residents, find your Senator and Representative here. The men behind the bill are Senator Chris Kapenga (District 33) and Representative Robert Brooks (District 60).

Current Wisconsin law protects burials thusly: The Director of the historical society maintains a catalog of burial sites which are “likely to be of archaeological interest or areas likely to contain burial sites” (Section 2b) and that “No person may intentionally cause or permit the disturbance of a cataloged burial site or the cataloged land contiguous to a cataloged burial site without a permit from the director issued under this subsection” (Section 5). (Wisconsin Statutes, 157.70 Burial sites preservation.) (Not that I like to see any exceptions, but it does at least acknowledge that burials exist and provide for reinterment.)

The proposed changes include a clause that would allow destruction of sites that fail to establish “that human remains are present in the burial site through written historical records corroborated by the results of ground-penetrating radar, other imaging technology, or archaeological excavation and examination” (emphasis mine). Not only could the site be destroyed, but it would also be erased from the state catalog as if it had never existed: if human remains are not proven by the above criteria, “the director shall remove the burial site...from the catalog.” (2015-2016 Legislature, Bill LRB-2890)

Beyond the disappointing fact that the protection of effigy mounds is up for debate at all, regardless of burial status, the proposed bill is also troubling for “white men’s” cemeteries. If an above-ground earthen construction alone is not enough to assure protection, then a straggly group of headstones in the middle of a field could be targeted, too. Even a 100-year-old burial may have decomposed beyond recognition by the above methods--does that mean the person buried there has ceased to matter, has ceased to be worth remembering?

Burial sites are a poignant reminder of those who have come before us. When we stand at the grave of an ancestor, do we consider the state of decomposition of their earthly remains and coffin? It is more common to consider their life. Thus, burial sites are a continuous link to the past, to learn from or meditate on. The demeaning of burials, like LRB- 2890 seeks to do, is an affront to the living and the dead. It removes that part of our culture that respects our forefathers and remembers their contributions. Without these physical anchors to our past, we become dependent on ourselves for all the answers--without respect for history, there is no learning from it.

Regardless of what burials mean to the living, the dead themselves may have anticipated perpetual burial, due to tradition and/or rules of religion, and would be taken aback to find that their memorial was at risk of destruction. The religious significance of burials cannot be downplayed, as the rites of burial may have included the rule of a perpetual grave. On the secular end of the spectrum, it is common to hear in burial planning, “This is where I want to spend eternity.” Rather than a respect for corporeal remains based on a belief system, this is a companion cultural view that where an individual’s body is buried is the literal location of that individual until the end of time. Regardless of religious tendencies, our American culture has an inherent belief in the endurance of burials.

Don’t delay. Write to your officials today, and read more about Wisconsin’s effigy mound and burial site laws, and discussion of the topic, at the links below.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Today I'm just highlighting some group/family photos from my collection of Klar pictures. Once you learn a few faces, it gets pretty easy to pick them out in other photos, too, so I encourage my Klar cousins to study these and then see if you can pick out familiar faces in your family albums! (And then scan and share the pictures for the rest of us, too.) Click on any of these pictures to be taken to a larger version on Flickr.

Look at these lovely young ladies! They are all first cousins with Klar parents--Margaret, Peter, and Christian III (children of Christian Jr. and Susan Quast). From left to right: Florence and Katharine Manning (Margaret's children), Theresa Klar (Peter's daughter), and Mathilda Klar (Christian's daughter).

This is another cousin picture with two of Peter (Pete) Klar's daughters and two of their Specht cousins (Pete married Mary Ann Specht). We don't know the names of the Specht girls at this time, but left to right: Agnes Klar, Specht Girl, Theresa Klar, and Specht Girl.

This is an assorted group. Written on the back are the words "Oh My!" and nothing else; interpret that as you will. Back row: Possibly Christian Klar III. Second row: Agnes Klar (I'm pretty sure) and Bill Fure (Christina's brother). Third row: Peter Quast (brother-in-law of Christian; uncle to the kids), Peter Klar, Mathilda Klar, Theresa Klar, and unknown man. Front row: Florence and Aloysius Klar.

There are 15 faces in this next photo! Someday I hope we know all their identities. For now, we know:

This is another great group shop. I'm going to split the identification between left/right groups (adults and children on the left, and a gaggle of young ladies on the right):

On the left side are Annie Holzer, Christian Fure Klar with a child, possibly her brother Bill sitting next to her, Christian Klar III seated with arms crossed, Pete Klar standing, and a girl seated in front of Pete. The gaggle of girls to the right: in back, Girl 1, Girl 2, Mathilda Klar, Theresa Klar. In front, Agnes Klar and Girl 3. More pictures of Annie Holzer's and Bill Fure's children might lead to identifications of the young'uns.

Here's a picture from the ol' Klar-Piquette mine. Left to right: Annie Holzer, Mary Klar Bonin (daughter of Pete Klar), Pete Bonin, and two unknown men.

The two men in the back are stated to be brothers Pete and Anton Bonin. (Both married Klar girls. Pete married Pete Klar's daughters Mary, and Anton married Henry Klar's daughter Priscilla.) The boy in front is said to be my grandpa, Aloysius Klar. The other four kids are not identified.

Just chillin'. Pete Bonin, left, with father-in-law Pete Klar and an unknown man.

I have a theory that this may be a Fure family reunion picture. Two of Christian and Christina's children have been located. Can you find Mathilda and Cyril? (This is the test portion of this post.) The woman in the back row, third from the left, looks like Louisa Wunderlin Fure. Carole Fure noticed a resemblance between the woman on the far left and Elizabeth Fure Siepker. What do you think? Are there are other faces that you recognize?

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Did you know that every time a person scans an antique photo at less than 600 DPI, a fairy dies? It's true. The pixel fairies are all about spreading the magic of details, and are passionate about the digital preservation of antique photos (as well as physical preservation after they're digitized). I'm finding that many people are unaware of this epidemic running rampant in fairy world, so I'm raising awareness of this very important cause.

How does the scan quality of a photo affect the fairies, you might ask. Well, observe the following three examples of the same photo scanned at three different quality levels (measured in DPI, or "dots per inch"):

Scanned at 100 DPI:

Scanned at 300 DPI:

Scanned at 600 DPI:

See the difference? At 600 DPI, you can see the individual strands of the hat decoration, folds in fabric, even the hat pin to the left. More details, when it comes to historical artifacts, are always better. You owe it to future generations to give them all the details you possibly can.

Also, just for fun, here's how a photograph taken with a digital camera compares:

If you're a skilled photographer with quality equipment, you could get a better reproduction than with a basic point-and-click digital camera, which the above is representative of. And, sometimes size and fragility limit what you can put in a scanner bed, and in that case you may have to get by with a photograph; but whenever possible, scan the photo (at 600 DPI or more!)

Here are some other points that the pixel fairies would like you to take away from this tutorial:

Lossy versus lossless formats. Make sure that your master digital back-up photo is saved in a lossless (that doesn't lose quality) format such as TIFF or PNG. These files take up more space, but are vital for retention of detail. You can save copies in alternate lossy (that lose quality) formats, such as JPG, that take up less space and are easier to share between relatives. However, always have the master lossless scan on hand to share with detail-minded cousins!

Cropping photos. I use a straighten tool to get all edges at 90 degree angles, and then crop to the edge of the photo or mounting paper, even if the photo doesn't go all the way to the edge. The edge material might have useful information on the photographer's name and city; decorative designs on a cabinet card might provide hints for dating the photo. If there is anything on the back of the photo (whether a studio mark or a hand-written note by a previous owner), scan that, too!

A note on restorations: With current technology it is quite easy to digitally repair tears, creases, stains, etc. on old photos by using tools in graphic editing programs. It's fine to create a touched-up version for display, but be sure to save a digital backup of the unaltered version and preserve it carefully. The thing with restorations is that you can guess at the details, but you cannot know exactly what the missing pixels are supposed to be. Case in point: in my grandparents' wedding portrait, there was a big ugly spot on Grandma's face. I edited out that blemish as soon as I had scanned it. Time went by, and I ran across different prints of the same portrait, and I realized that each one had the exact same spot. I finally realized that this dirt was actually a polka dot on the tulle veil! That was an historical detail that I had irreverently left on the cutting room floor--so do keep the unaltered image in your archive.

You cannot "retrieve" lost quality. Graphics programs may let you change the DPI setting of a photo. Don't be fooled by this. The max DPI can only be gained through the original scan. Setting a "higher DPI" later on will result in a very poor attempt by the program to fill in the quality holes. It won't work.

Storing your digital photos. Do an internet search for "genealogy digital backup" (or any similar phrase) for lots of ideas on how to store your files to protect against loss, such as backup drives and internet storage. It's a good idea to have multiple backups in case one fails! Myself, I have copies on my hard drive, saved to my Ancestry.com tree, and organized in Flickr albums. I enjoy the organization features in Flickr, and you get a ton of space for free (1 TB) plus privacy features (you can choose who can see your photos). Choose at least 2-3 backup methods that make sense to you.

Storing the original photos. Look for acid-free paper, photo boxes, plastic sleeves, etc. Acid-free is the key! Like with digital storage, there are different options--mounting on paper pages in an album, keeping in plastic sleeves in a 3-ring binder, or stored in photo boxes. Find one that works for you; just make sure that all parts of the storage system are acid-free.

A closing request from the fairies: they are also often traumatized to the point of death by photocopies. I know that sometimes a photocopy is all that has been passed down to us, and we don't know which distant relation (or antique store) holds the original. But the fairies request that you please try your hardest to track down that original print and distribute your high-quality scan for the viewing pleasure of all family members.

Please e-mail me if you have questions (or corrections). I'm passionate about preserving old photographs, and I would love to provide whatever tips I am able to get you started on your preservation project.

You knew your port of arrival and an exact date? You get a gold star, Christian Klar Jr.

It turns out that 5 Nov 1847 was not a heavy day for German immigrants to New York. It was mostly people from Ireland and England. In fact, there only seem to be three Germans on 5 Nov, that ended up coming in on the ship Eliz. Dennison out of Liverpool. They were three men, occupation "Sailor": Benjamin Kase, age 26; Morris Bock, age 30, and Christian Wenterfisher, age 23.

Well, that’s interesting. I’m looking for a German named Christian coming in on November 5th, and sure enough there's a Christian from Germany in the right age range. The last name is completely off, however.

Another interesting detail is that one of his companions had the surname Kase. There’s a Kase family in Grant County.

These are two intriguing coincidences.

A precursory search for these three men on other records comes up with no ready leads. Maybe they had been travelling under fake names! What if they were running from the law and hitched a ride out of Liverpool under cover of being sailors? What if the old family story was true, that Christian Klar had killed a man back in Germany?

I’ve been to Dudweiler, and I can’t say that I'd blame him if he did. I'm sure I would end up murdering someone if I lived there. The restaurant service is terrible. I'm guessing that Christian was served a room-temperature drink and was kept waiting hours for the bill when there was a secret cash register hidden in the back of the restaurant and the only server who comes by only speaks French. And that's when tempers flared and blood was shed, and suddenly, moving to America seemed like a really good idea. BECAUSE EVERY AMERICAN HAS A GOD-GIVEN RIGHT TO ICE IN HIS DRINK.

That’s my theory, anyway.

A record from the next day presents a somewhat more plausible scenario. On 6 November 1847, the ship Marianna sailed into New York containing an "Johan Clar" (remember, Johann/John is Christian’s middle name/possibly baptismal first name). He is mushed in together with a group of "Swiss," but there is a Spies family in the group (there are also Dudweiler Spies), so I’m inclined to consider this one a contender, too. Right alongside Christian Wenterfisher.

The Spies family consists of:

Nicholas, age 47 years 6 months

Jeanette, age 47 years 4 months

Gertrude Spies, age 20 years 6(?) months

Nicholas Spies, age 19 years 2 months

George Spies, age 9 years 4 months

Anna Spies, age 17 years 5 months

May Spies, age 15 years or 6 years

If these Spies are in your family, I want to talk! Can we confirm a Dudweiler connection?

Regardless of his name, Christian rolled into New York in 1847 one way or another, and promptly filed his Declaration of Intent two years later (two years being the time of residence required to file for this step toward citizenship). And he was already living in Grant County when he did the paperwork. The next notable event in the Klar story:

The Klars, Holzers, and Spies are the main families I'm concerned with, but the other names mixed in (Geibel, Meyer) may come into play someday.

Three years later, Chris "Klare" appears in the 1855 Wisconsin State Census for Grant County, Town of Platteville. Information on this census in limited, but we learn that Chris' household consists of 3 males and 4 females, of which 5 were foreign-born. Can we figure out who they all are? This is like one of those logic puzzles.

Who was Margaret (possibly Mary) Klar born approx. 1815 that came with Christian Sr.? Ancestry member hvenitz who has studied the Einwohner von Dudweiler und Jägersfreude! has found that Christian and Mary Catherine had a daughter named Margaret born in 1824 who married Johann Georg Spies in 1845 in Dudweiler (and a George Spies was also part of the 1852 arrival). Two things:

The age given for Margaret on the ship manifest puts her birth year around 1815; hvenitz's info put her birth in 1824. That's a 9 year difference, which isn't unheard of, but I like to stay in the 5 year range of years.

If she was married and traveling with her husband, why would she have gone by her maiden name?

Also of note: Christian Sr.'s wife, Mary Catherine (Micka) Klar does not appear to have been on the ship manifest (though that handwriting sure is something). But she does appear in the 1860 census, so one way or another, she arrived in Wisconsin.

Anyway, if Margaret Klar IS the wife of George Spies, perhaps the Spies family made up the missing members of the Chris Klar household in 1855. In 1852, there were two Spies children, a boy and a girl. There's no room for a boy if George takes up the third male spot, but two girls would take up the last of the female spots.

But wait, there's more! Five out of seven were foreign-born, remember? So that would mean two of the household were children born in America. Working from this angle, perhaps both of George and Margaret's children that were with them in New Orleans had died, but they had two more (girls) in the meantime.

Anyway, even if Christian Jr. had some rough patches in life, he met this cute girl, Susan, in Platteville and they got married 18 April 1857. And their marriage certificate is a motherlode of genealogical information--parents, maiden names, birthdates, and birth places!

This is a scan of a photocopy and includes a note from Mrs. W.E. (Gertrude) M. Morris of Elburn, Illinois that it was made for Tommie Klar. Gertrude identified Christian Jr. as her grandfather, and Peter Klar as her uncle. This may have been Gertrude Holzer, daughter of Henry and Anna (Klar) Holzer; or Gertrude Manning, daughter of Daniel and Margaret (Klar) Manning.

Moving on to 1860, there is some evidence to bear out a connection between George Spies, Margaret Klar, and the Christian Klars with the information the 1860 Federal Census provides. The George and Margaret "Spear" family are immediate neighbors to Christian Sr. and Christian Jr. (now, each with their own household and name spelled "Clare"). The Spies have four daughters and one son. The eldest, Catharine, is nine years old and her birthplace is listed as Prussia. Going back to the New Orleans manifest, the youngest Spies was (at the best I could transcribe) "Spies, Carhar., age 2/4, female." I could believe that this particular scribble was intended to convey Catherine, and young enough that her country of birth might be confused or covered up. The two eldest, Catharine and Margaret, would have been born in/before 1855; and the next three, after 1855. This fits in with the 1855 household census of Chris Klar scenario proposed above. Verification that this is the case, or that Margaret and Christian Jr. are even siblings, is pending further evidence.

Christian Jr. and Susan have their first child, a boy, creatively named Christian. There are now three Christian Klars between two neighboring households. Note that Christian Jr.'s in-laws, the Jacob Quast family, are also close neighbors.

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Note that the letters "K H" are written to the right. To the left, there is what could be an "S", or possibly a scribble, that is fainter than the other letters.On the back, we have words written in Joe Neid's own hand:

(my Aunt Kathie's handwriting) Barn that Joe Neid built on Cassville Ridge. The handwriting above is his.WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? What is the significance of making a note of the Masens' anniversary on the back of this photograph? Is the barn even connected to the Masens, or was it just a convenient piece of paper to scribble on?Here's what I found on some excellent candidates for the Masens of Joe Neid's note:

James R Mason, age 3, appears in the 1870 census of the Robert (age 43) and Sarah (age 41) Mason household of Benton, Lafayette County, Wisconsin with siblings Mary (14), Sarah J (12), and Emma (5). Joe Neid's note of Mr. Mas[o]n being 95 in 1961 puts his birth year ~1866.

In 1880, James (age 13) is at home with his parents and sister Jane (age 21--probably Sarah J of 1870). They are still living in Benton.

James R. Mason and Cora S. Evans were married in Lafayette County on 12 Jan 1888. The 1900 census shows them (James age 33 and Cora age 34) in Shullsburg, Lafayette County, Wisconsin with Berniece (age 11) and Robert (age 7). Cora's (born in Vermont) estimated birth year is 1865, which is in the range of error for a stated age of 98 in 1961 (birth year ~1863, and a trifle older than her husband).

The family is much the same in 1905, with the addition of Myra, age 6. Cora's middle initial is given as "C".

In 1910, the family has moved to Apple River, Jo Daviess County, Illinois. The three children, "Bernice", Robert, and Myra are all at home.

The family is still living in Apple River in 1920. Robert and Myra are still home; Berniece is dead or moved out, and 75-year-old Cynthia Basset has joined the household. Cynthia is listed as mother-in-law to the head of household (James). Note that Cora's maiden name for her marriage was Evans, so perhaps her father was dead and her mother had remarried as Basset.

The household is down to 3 members in 1930 (James, Cora, and Robert), and they have relocated to Scales Mound, Jo Daviess County, Illinois.

James Robi[n?]son Masondied 20 Jan 1945 in Scales Mound, Illinois at age 77. His birth date is given as 25 Jan 1867, and birthplace as Lafayette County, Wisconsin. He was buried in Scales Mound; and his parents were Robert Mason and Sarah Robinson, both born in West Morlan County, England. His spouse's name? Eneus Mason. That's one heck of a mis-transcription of Cora.

Aw, shoot. I just realized: James can't be celebrating an anniversary in 1961 at age 95 if he died in 1945 at age 77. And everything was working out so nicely. BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD.Okay. 1910 census. Grant and surrounding counties. A Mr. Mason born ~1866 with a wife a few years older born ~1863. I can do this. There are 5 possibilities to consider.

Jackson C Mason (born ~1866) and Iona Mason (born ~1867) in Montfort, Grant County, Wisconsin.

John R Mason (~1867) and Emma A Mason (~1870) in Glen Haven, Grant County, Wisconsin.

In the 1940 census, using the same search parameters, only one of the couples is still around: John R and Emma on County V, Glen Haven. County V runs ~10 miles north of Cassville. Remember, the barn was said to have been built on Cassville Ridge. Maybe I should figure out exactly where the feature of "Cassville Ridge" runs.Okay, so I got lost in maps for awhile, and I can't see that County V out of Glen Haven could be considered on Cassville Ridge. But I did find John Mason's farmstead in Glen Haven Township, Section 17 NW. (HOWEVER, on a totally unrelated note, now I want to know what exactly is the 20 acres of land belonging to Grant County in Cassville Township Section 8 SW that switched ownership from Sheaser, Bausch, and Casanova between 1918 and 1956.)To be perfectly honest, I don't really like any of these couples. They don't feel like a good fit. It's nothing personal. They're just not as cool as James and Emma. Are we sure it can't be them? Are we sure that James Mason didn't come back from the dead for his 73rd anniversary party with Joe Neid?Okay Google, I'm handing this over to you. Do your thing. Get this out to people that might have more pieces to the puzzle. (Yes, I talk to Google. Does anyone else talk to Google? Maybe it's just me.)

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

So, I'm really obsessed with having complete lists of things. And I've set out to have an extremely complete list of cemeteries in Grant County. All the main sources (Find A Grave, GenWeb, RootsWeb, Genealogy Trails, and Grant County Genealogical Society) have some information that is different from all the others. Of course. So, I mashed all their data together to make one complete guide, and then I plugged all that info into a Google map. Voilà!

Except, there are still some cemetery names I came across that I can't pinpoint to an exact location, and this is driving me crazy. I reach out to you, gentle reader, to assist. Where are these 34 cemeteries? (The link after each one is the primary source that speaks of its existence, but I need more detailed directions than are given.) Updated 16 April 2015.

Adney - Platteville Township - Grant County Genealogical Society map. NOTE 16 Apr 2015: Section 29. Exact coordinates? This is actually very close to the original Klar homestead. I'd be interested in any cemeteries in this neighborhood.

George Jackson Farm - Hickory Grove Township - Grant County Genealogical Society map. NOTE 16 Apr 2015: The plot thickens! The cemetery I found for #7 that I thought could be Homer? It's on the land of Geo. Jackson in Section 8. Are Homer and George Jackson Farm the same cemeteries? Or are there THREE cemeteries close to each other?

County H - Smelser Township - Grant County Genealogical Society map. UPDATE 16 Apr 2015: It is reportedly in Section 29 of Smelser Township, which would put it (I think) on County H between Quarry Road and Morgan Road. Exact coordinates?

R.L. Clark Farm - Smelser Township - Grant County Genealogical Society map. UPDATE 16 Apr 2015: Cheryl Whitaker-Bailey pointed out that the 1895 map of Smelser Township shows a cemetery in section 34 on--tah-dah!--the land of R.L. Clark. Looking at the same spot on Google Maps, there is an unplowed bit of field in that area. The location has been updated on my cemetery map.

Friday, February 20, 2015

I never spent much time thinking about prostitution until I got into genealogy. Now, every research path seems to lead me to practitioners of that oldest and most revered profession. If your family research doesn't introduce you to at least a few prostitutes, you're doing it wrong. (Also, I am also very sarcastic. Please take everything I say with a grain of salt.)

Today I got an invitation to an historical lecture entitled "Tart's Delight: 19th Century La Crosse as seen through the eyes of Madam Frankie La Salle." And I'm like "Ooh, that's actually very interesting. Because 19th century La Crosse prostitutes may very well be the key to EVERYTHING in Dutcher family history."

Now I'm totally psyched about seeing La Crosse through the eyes of Madam La Salle! Visit Monroe County Local History Room News for more information on this event. This is gonna be awesome, you guys.

(Oh, and the state historical society? The only form of payment accepted for copies is $1 bills.)

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